Changing Views
by P. Wind
Summary: Not taking things for granted means a lot.
1. Lovely Life

Run. It's the only thing in my mind right now. To run away from those criminals. I don't even know why they're following me!

Well, except for the thing that right after they asked for my wallet, I punched one of the two robbers in the nose. I'm pretty sure I heard a crack. It could be my weak knuckles giving in, but that's not the point. They're raging over that fact and I'm damn sure that they'll kill me as quick as possible once they captured me. I suppose it's better than dying slowly and painfully. Either way, I don't want to die.

I run straight, not looking back. If I take turns, I'm afraid they might be able to take a shortcut and cut me off here and there. Good thing the narrow streets that we have are empty at this time of the day. Who would go out at 4:40 in the morning?

I see the rumored forest nearby, and approach it. I Hope that they wouldn't see me go in here. They say that once people go deep inside, they won't be able to find their way back and die. I hope they believe that crazy stuff.

Sadly, once I passed by the trees, I heard someone shout. "He went over there!" Seriously. It's either I'm too slow or they're fast. I guess doing nothing but sit on a chair has a big effect on my body.

And so I continue to run, run, and run for the next few minutes until I'm pretty sure I lost them. I'm also pretty sure now that I'm lost, and was this forest really that big? Well, The sun is a bit higher right now so it's not so dark here anymore. I still have a whole day ahead of me to get out of this forest.

... But all those running made me hungry. Why did I chose not to eat breakfast today anyway?

Maybe my phone could help me find my way back. Yeah that's a great idea. I could see where there's a higher signal, it probably means I'm near the small town I lived in. Fishing my cellphone from my pocket, I look at the signal indicator.

Wow. None? Am I that far from the town? I know I don't run fast but this is depressing. I can't even call or text a message. Maybe I just have an ugly cellphone with an ugly reception. Yeah, maybe that's it.

I glance at the time. 5:02AM. Well, time to go back.

Sighing, I put my phone back into my pocket and started to walk in a random direction. I didn't run straight after all. The adrenaline just rushed when the possibility hit me that they could come and pop out at any time. I ran as fast as I could and turned many times that It's a miracle I didn't trip or anything.

I guess I could enjoy the birds singing, the fresh air blowing, and the tall grass swaying as I walk.

Think of this as a walk in the usual park, but this time you're hungry and you don't seemingly know where to go next. Now that I think about it, I'm a bit thirsty too.

Along the way I picked up a thin stick with half the length of my arm.

To get hunger and thirst out of my head, I play with the item on my hand, hitting the stick to the passing tree while trying to find my way out of this forest.

I occasionally glance at my phone in hopes of a bar of signal or so, but it seems I'm out of luck.

For an hour, I wander around the forest. Is it really this big? I'm sure I can see the end of the forest if I stand on top of a two-storey building, and it really isn't that big from there.

Luckily, after another hour or so, with the thought of food and water driving me to walk like a zombie, I finally see an end of the forest with the sun still above the skies.

As I near the clearing, I see a river and I run towards it. I could finally drink something!

It's wonderful. I didn't even know there's a place like this near the town! It's comparable to a painting. The clear blue sky, the flowers, the river, and many other things I didn't pay attention to. It's just wonderful. I could stay here all day long if not for the fact that the river is there to remind me that I'm thirsty.

I take a drink on the river and... it tastes like water, and that's what I expected, anyway. It won't taste something like what a few cartoon characters have said, that's for sure. After quenching my thirst, I look around for something that resembles food. Now that I think about it, I didn't see any berries on the whole damn time I was wandering around the forest.

I check my phone again for something and I found out that it's off. Funny, I don't remember turning it off. I think I'm able to confirm that someone above probably hates me, because it doesn't even turn on when I try to. Sigh. Hey, the air is fresher here. Now if I only wasn't hungry, I would stay here until my body needs something.

I could follow the river downstream and see if I'm lucky. I might be able to reach a park and hopefully buy something that my money would allow.

Somewhere along the way, I spotted a village, and it's already afternoon. I didn't know I'd be able to use the word village this soon.

And so I walk towards it. I didn't bother running, since it's a waste of energy, and It'll make me more hungry too. Now I don't want that.

I'm pretty sure my boss could wait for a few days or weeks until I get back. It's not like there's someone waiting for me back there in my home anyway. Why not enjoy the situation while I still can?


	2. The Village

Well, it seems calling it a village is like mistaking an elephant on a distance for a horse. It's not so small as it seems; it's pretty big when you look from the inside. When I entered, I asked myself, where are the people? Not counting the three guards near the entrace, this place looks deserted. Maybe they're sleeping? I don't know the lifestyle of the people here, so what do I know. It still makes me think that this is a deserted village and the traditional buildings were made for display. Like a well-made replica of a village. It's certain that those guards are real though. Those swords looks sharp, not that I know a sharp sword when I see one.

I walk on the dirt, trusting my nose to lead me where food might be found. Or my common sense, whichever is more reliable. Having no idea where to go next, I move towards to what I assumed the center of the village. Along the way I see a few store, a couple of children playing hide-and-seek, and after a few minutes of walking at a leisurely pace, a bakery. Finally, a place where food is available.

I enter the store for a quick shopping and bought a dozen of small buns for myself. The owner puts it in a brown paper bag and I thank her for that. They also sells bottled water, so I bought one. It looks like even in a place like this, people still use the modern currency. It'll be weird if they use copper coins and the likes anyway. They won't get any visitors if that's the case, assuming that this is like a tourist spot. I also won't be able to buy these.

Now since it's one of the few times I'm out of town, I'll be staying here for a while. This place looks like it was pulled out of an adventure story. I don't know how I'll be able to live here if this will be like what I think it would be. No machines that helps us do things easier is troublesome, but I can manage anyhow.

Ah, well, no use in thinking about that. I won't get anywhere by standing idly. I noticed that the skies are already orange. The sun is setting and I don't have a place to stay yet. It's a wonder how I'm still calm in this situation, where someone would be panicking and be confused.

Maybe I just don't really care, and that I thirst for something new and adventurous?

Hey these buns are pretty tasty.

Okay. I need to start somewhere. Maybe there's an Inn here, or something like that. I start to walk again towards the assumed center of this village. Maybe it's the best place to start. It's relatively noisy, after all. Which means people who can help me if they're kind enough. I could already imagine the center being crowded with stands and other activites.

As I go, the place gets denser and denser. Maybe there's an event or something. There's only one way to find out.

When I get there, the first thing I notice is the statue of a dragon in the middle. After I was done checking it, I notice that the crowd are taking a subtle look at me.

What. What's wrong? Is it becaues of what I'm doing? It's not because of the way I dress... right?

Now that I think about it, I feel out of place. They're all wearing something traditional and I'm the only one wearing something modern. It's like I'm a black smudge on a rainbow. An eyesore.

When I look at them in the eyes, they quickly turn and look at their companion if they have one, or resume whatever it is that they're doing.

The pressure I feel is so great and irritating that it prompt me to walk away immediately.

It didn't go as planned, but I learned something. This place isn't empty. They really do just hang out in the center, because when I was there, nothing was going on. Or I just didn't stay long enough or ask someone for me to know what the occasion is. I can't help it though. I'm not a social person. I prefer to do things my way, too.

I was a few steps away from the center, about to turn after the next building, when someone called out to me. "Hey! Wait up!"

I turn to look at the voice and my eyes landed on a beautiful girl with a bluish hair jogging towards me. She wears a blue dress that blends to white just below her knees. A red ribbon is situated on her chest. A heavy-looking hat is placed on her head, which looks silly. How does it even manage to stay still?

She slows down to a stop. The hat didn't even budge.

Up close, her eyes are quite strange. A red one. Contact lens? Heh.

"Hey, what's wrong? Don't like the crowd?" She asks.

"Not really."

"So... what's the problem?"

What's in it for her anyway? Is she an authority of this place? I answer her directly.

"I don't have a place to stay." And I really need one right now. It's going to get dark in a few hours and I won't be able to sleep peacefully lying on the ground in an unknown place.

She puts her hand on her chin thoughtfully.

When I was wandering around, I found no hotels or inn here, so I doubt she'll be able to help. Unless she lets me sleep on her house. That would be nice. I absolutely have no trouble with that.

I was about to say something when she suddenly speaks. "Maybe... you could stay in the school for today."

I didn't know it'll be this easy to find a place. A school is fine too. As long as it's under a roof and I'm secure, as secure as I could be in a stranger's place, but if the school is her's then I have no problem with that. Is she teaching there too?

"Oh uhm, thanks. Where is this place anyway?" I ask her. I want to know where I am right now. I at least want to know how to get home after I'm done with my self-proclaimed vacation.

Silence.

She smiles a sad look to me. I wouldn't have notice it if I'm not obersvant.

"This is Gensokyo."


	3. Night

"Gensokyo... I see." I say to her. Why the melancholic expression though? Is it because she doesn't like the name? Maybe I'm just imagining it, but I still feel that she wants to say something.

"Anyway, follow me. I'll show you where the school is." She walks away, not bothering to look at me to see if I'm following or not as she glance around. I follow her and look at the people as we pass by the center to see if they're still looking me. Gladly, they aren't.

While I was... eyeing her figure discreetly, she suddenly speaks. "We're here." She moves toward the nearest door and opens it. It's not even locked. Whoever manages this school is either very careless or trusts everyone in this village. Does the owner even knows it's being used for this? As if reading my mind, she give me an assurance as she steps inside and open the light. "Don't worry, I own this place."

Ah.

Well, If that's the case, then she's free to do whatever it is she wants to.

"Is it alright? Letting me sleep here, that is." I say for better measure as I follow her inside. She opens one of the two doors on the right side and glances at me to follow. She responded. "Why not?"

I keep silent. I was hoping that she'll say more.

Knowing that I won't respond, she went inside the room and I continue following her like a puppy. Inside the room, there's a table and a chair by the window, just across the room, and a cabinet beside the table. This room is spartan. What does she use this room for?

She opens the cabinet and pulls a futon out of it. I stare at her as she smile and gives me the futon. "Is this good enough?"

"Yes. Sorry for troubling you." Really. You gave me shelter, albeit a temporary one. I don't have the right to complain, too.

"If that's all you need then I'll be going now." She says to me as she walks toward the door.

"Thanks miss..." Wow. I realize that I didn't even know this beautiful woman's name.

"Kamishirasawa. Just ask the villagers if you need to find me."

"Okay. Thanks again."

She walks out of the room. I placed my nearly-forgotten buns on the table and set the futon on the floor. I don't want to be bothered setting it up later when I feel tired.

Ok. Everything seems to be all set.

Looking out the windows, I noticed that the sun had already set, but the lights are making it bright outside. There seems to be more noise too. I wonder what's the commotion all about.

I go outside, straight to the center of the village.

Wow. There's a lot of people, but the fact that there are cosplayers is more surprising. Who would have thought that in this village, there would be such thing?

The village seems to be more livelier at night, seeing as more stores are open at night than at day, and I noticed that there are bars too. Some of the cosplayers seems to own a shop here, as they could be seen opening one.

I spot Miss Kamishirasawa observing the people and I ask her if there's an occassion or something like that. Without looking at me, she responds. "None at all. It's really busy during the night."

I see.

She seems busy... so I leave her to her own devices and I went to explore on my own.

As expected, it was a boring night.

I guess I could only go so far when observing; not talking to people. Some things I observed were taken note though. Lovely ladies, bars, miss Kamishirasawa talking for a long time to a guy with a long hair, and more ladies. Other than that, it was boring.

I leave the place and go to the school miss Kamishirasawa pointed to me, and luckily I still remember the way from here. I immediately lay down on the futon that I had already set and sleep came more quickly than I thought.


	4. Different

Wake up, crawl out, stand up, go out. I don't remember my house looking like this.

Where the hell am I?

Oh yeah. I forgot.

I dig in my pocket to get my phone. It's a bit dark outside so I know it's still early, but I want to know the exact time now. It's off. I forgot that it ran out of battery yesterday. Sighing, I put my phone back to my pocket and look for the nearest bathroom.

I didn't get to explore this building yesterday, but since this is a school, it's bound to have a comfort room.

After entering some rooms, I finally found one and began to answer the call of nature. I just noticed the noise coming outside the room, and I'm curious as to what's going on this early.

When I get to the source of the noise, which is the classroom just beside the room I was sleeping in, the students quickly move to their seat and greet me.

Apparently, they thought I'm a teacher, and they're actually right.

Ok, so... how do I do this? The students are expecting me to do something, and I have no idea what that something is. Luck seems to be on my side today though, as miss Kamishirasawa suddenly opens the door behind me. She looks surprsied to see me.

"Hey, you're awake. Earlier than I expected." Same goes to you and those children. From the clock above the doorway, it says 4:30AM. It's a wonder that someone would want to go to school this early, especially childrens.

I took a step to give way for miss Kamishirasawa so she could start her class.

"Ok class, this person here is... he's currently a guest of mine." Damn! I forgot to tell her my name. I kick myself mentally for that.

Miss Kamishirasawa looks at me expectantly while I stood there stupidly. I smile and said hi to the students.

"He's here to observe you so please behave properly." ... Excuse me?

"There's a vacant seat at the back, you can take a sit there." She says to me. I nod and walk beside the wall towards it. I don't want to disappoint her. If she wants me to do this then it's alright... I guess.

"So, good morning..." And she starts her lesson like that. She's currently reviewing the class about history. Those events that she says are kind of fascinating, like the Great Hakurei Border. What was it's purpose, when was it built.

For the whole three hours, miss Kamishirasawa just reviewed the children on history. When someone complained they already studied that yesterday, I immediately realize that _maybe_ she just wants me to know more about Gensokyo?

Well, how thoughtful, if that's the case. I hope I'm not wrong.

Miss Kamishirasawa dismissed the class with an assignment and they all groan at that horrible news. I, however, am thankful for that. I haven't eaten anything since I wake up and I was just concentrating on not noticing my hunger.

As the students leave the classroom one by one, miss Kamishirasawa is cleaning the board and her table. In little ways, I help her by arranging the tables and chairs. She thanks me for that. It was nothing, though.

"Sorry for wasting your time." She says to me.

"I don't mind at all." I ease her. I'll do whatever you want me to do as long as it's within reasonable bounds, miss Kamishirasawa.

"Did you eat already?"

As a matter of fact, "No." She reminded me that my stomach is aching to have it's acids on something.

"You better eat, then. I'll buy you breakfast to thank you." She smiles. You don't have to, but my stomach says otherwise.

"Thanks..." I follow her outside the school and went to another building.

She fumbles for the lock of the door and opens it. She invites me in and I follow.

Hey is this her home? I thought she was going to buy me something.

"We won't be able to buy food at this time of the day, so I'll just cook something. Besides, I haven't eaten yet, too." Oh. I have a lot to learn, don't I.

She went to the kitchen, presumely to cook a lovely meal for me, or that's how I want to think it as. I sit and wait for her.

Her house isn't all that big on the outside, but it's quite spacious inside. A stair on the left could be seen right after I enter the house. There's a kotatsu in the middle of this room, with a pencil holder above it. A sofa, A table, a chair, other than that, nothing else. The kitchen is just the room beside this.

"Food is ready." She exclaims from the kitchen.

Really. Going to such length for me. If I was her I don't think I'll be able to do anything like this for a stranger.

I go to the kitchen, and saw that there's only one room for the kitchen and the dining room. Miss Kamishirasawa is getting something from the cupboard. "You need something?" I stand beside her.

"No, I got it already." She closes the cupboard and on her hand are two pairs of chopsticks.

She smiles at me. "Let's eat." She moves toward the table and I sit across her.

After giving thanks, I snap the disposable chopsticks apart. We ate in silence, something I'm used to, and my mind went to auto-pilot.

After the meal, I offered to wash the bowls and plates that we used, while miss Kamishirasawa settled to cleaning the table.

"You have to find work, you know."

That's not a problem. I'm a teacher too, maybe I can help you with your work.

"You should also know what the do's and don'ts here."

Like what?

"Like going outside the village alone."

Huh...? What's wrong with that?

I try to change the subject before it goes to something I can't respond to. "Hey, you're a teacher right? I'm a teacher too, so maybe I could help you with that matter." I turn my head behind to where I thought miss Kamishirasawa was. She's not there.

"Oh, you teach too?" she said. The voice came from the living room.

I wash the last bowl as I respond to her. "Yeah. I'm a science teacher, to be specific."

A knock on the door.

After washing the bowl, I dry my hands and went to the living room to see who it is.

Miss Kamishirasawa is at the door and is talking to a woman in a white shirt. She's wearing a red pants that seems to be littered with red and white rectangular patterns, and her white long hair are randomly tied with something that has the same pattern her pants have. Her hands are currently stuffed on her pockets. She seem to notice me, and looks straight at me, with her eyebrows raised.

What.

"That's him?"

What's with the look?


	5. Bothersome

Miss Kamishirasawa gives way for the girl as she walks toward me. For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this.

And then she sniffs at me.

"Man, you stink!" She comments. What the hell? The same goes to you. You smell like smoke.

I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Well, sorry about that. I forgot to take a bath because of my hunger." I retorted stupidly. It's true though. I woke up and was supposed to take a shower immediately but miss Kamishirasawa here asked me to be a guest in her class.

"If you didn't sniff so rudely at me you wouldn't notice it." I added, which I regret after because of how stupid that reason is.

"Mokou, would you please be kind to my guest?" Miss Kamishirasawa sighs as she walk towards the girl, which you assume is Mokou. Who else would that be anyway?

Mokou looks at miss Kamishirasawa and grins. "Hey, you know I was just having fun." What. That irritates me further, but I keep my face the way it is.

For the second time, miss Kamishirasawa sighs and looks at me apologetically. Mokou, however, keeps grinning and chuckles as she faces me. "So how'd you end up here?"

I answer. "She invited me for breakfast."

"Well, how'd you get in the village?"

"I walked."

It's not working. She's still grinning. Damn she's annoying. I'm afraid she might say something else so I immediately added "And I think I'll take a walk outside right now." I walk past them and continue to the door.

"Hey, wait, where are you going?" In a worried tone, Mokou asks me. Well, I didn't expect that.

"I just told you. Outside." I replied, without looking back.

Right after I close the door, I took a deep breath of the fresh air that surrounds me. Ahh.

With nowhere to go in particular, I explore the village once again.

The distribution of the people are evenly in the village now. I guess there really was an event yesterday.

I go round and round the village until I reach the end. The sun is high up above the sky, so I guess it took me hours. I sure do take my time.

On the edge of the village, I see a lot of trees on a distance.

Maybe it leads to another forest?

My curiosity is telling me to go in the forest, but from my experience, going inside an unknown forest isn't a good idea. Not that I've dealed with a handful of unknown forests before.

In the end, curiosity won over logic and I start to walk.

As I get closer, I could see a path leading towards it. Hey, maybe this time I won't get lost. It's eery though. Even if the sun is still high and it's bright, it's making me tense.

A voice suddenly called out to me from behind. "HEY! STOP!" Holy shit. I stumbled and almost run away because of that. I quickly turn around to confirm whose voice it is and lo, It's Mokou, and she's running to me.

She stops infront of me and grins. I suddenly get irritated. "Good thing I followed you like Keine told me." What. She stops grinning "You know, it's not a good idea to continue following that path."

Huh. What's wrong. Since miss Kamishirasawa probably told you to keep an eye on me, I'll listen to you. And your face looks serious enough. "And why is it?" I ask.

"You'll end up in the forest."

"What's wrong with that? Isn't that the point of this path?"

"Well, yeah basically but you aren't supposed to go there unless there's a very specific reason."

"I want to explore. Is that specific enough?"

She rolls her eyes at this. "You know what, I'll just join you."

I'm happy that you stopped but I don't know if I'll be able to enjoy the scenery with you around.

Not minding her, I continue to walk with her beside me. She's actually not that talkative than I thought. We walk in silence as we look at our surroundings. It's peaceful. I look at her for a change of view, and see her looking down at her feet, her face expressing deep thought. What's wrong?

We continue to walk until I saw a building, and I ask Mokou if somebody lives here in the forest.

"Huh? Yeah there is." She looks at me. "Why?"

I point out the building. She grins for the nth time.

"Ah, that. That's Kourindou."

You know, just telling me it's name won't help me.

"He sells alot of interesting stuffs. Most of them comes from the outside world, you know?"

Outside world? I didn't press her about that though. Maybe it's a quirk of her... It's still disturbing me though.

We near the building and, true enough, it says Kourindou on the sign above. It looks like it's open. I'm already here so, might as well enter.

As I open the door, a man wearing looks up from the chair he's sitting on behind the counter. Was he expecting any customers or not? He was reading a newspaper, but he suddenly puts it down and greets us after seeing us. I acknowledge him and I look at his items. On another hand, Mokou grins at the man and greets him.

"Yo."

So much for interesting things. His store offers a lot though, but they're not that useful to me at the moment. But... he's selling a cellphone charger. Now that's useful.

I ask out for the price and... he's not selling. He's says that he's trading the items here for another item. Come on. I need this charger. It's the exact one I'm looking for.

"Hey, Kourin." Mokou suddenly speaks up.

"It's Rinnosuke." He quickly replied and sighed. Does he get that alot?

"Why are you still running your shop here? This place is rarely visited, if at all." It might be my imagination, but I saw his eyes twitch.

"That's none of your business."

"You don't even sell the things you _sell_ here."

"I put them up for a trade. Is there something wrong?"

Whatever Mokou is trying to do, I think she's doing it well. I interrupt their talk and ask the man who called himself Rinnosuke. "I really need this thing here. I'm willing to buy it at any price." Not.

Luckily, he offered me a small price, and I quickly accept. I can't wait to go back and charge my phone up. I quickly thank him and he acknowledges it.

As soon as we step outside the shop, Mokou asks me why I bought this charger.

"My phone is dead."

She doesn't respond to that. I shrug and walk back to the village. I might have not fulfilled what I was supposed to do, which is to explore the end of this path, but that doesn't matter for now. Maybe I have a message.


	6. Knowing

As soon as we get back to the village, Mokou bids farewell and I continue to my room. I know miss Kamishirasawa told me that I could only use it for only yesterday but I don't have any place to go yet. I'm sure she'll understand. Hopefully.

... I wonder what's happening back at home. It's been only two days and I already miss those kids at the school I teach in. I'm sure my boss could handle those problems. After all, they're just elementary students. Me leaving so suddenly might have irritated him. Once I'm back, he'll probably just sigh at me and everything goes back to normal. So much for being a boss if he can't do anything about his employees. I guess that's the power of friendship. Not that I'm abusing it. I thank him for being like that.

Soon enough I'll have to go back, say goodbye to miss Kamishirasawa, no matter how painful it might be for me, and live my life the way it was. That _soon_ might be tomorrow for what I know.

After arriving in the room, I immediately search for an outlet, but to my dismay, there's none here in this room. What I found is that the buns I bought yesterday are now moldy. That's fast. Maybe these are breads with no preservatives? I heard that they mold pretty quickly.

**_Knock Knock._**

The door opens slightly and miss Kamishirasawa peers through the space. She smiles when she sees me. "I finally found you." Does she need something?

She goes into the room and closes the door. "I need to talk to you about your... stay here." Aaaand here it goes.

"I know you said that I can only stay here-"

"Not that." She cuts me off, her voice slightly louder. If it's not about this room, then now I have no idea what she's talking about.

"Sorry. I mean here in Gensokyo. You can't leave here."

What do you mean by that? Why not?

"You need to know this as soon as possible. For your safety."

She takes a deep breath and speaks. It sounds like it's well rehearsed. "This land is surrounded by a magical barrier, seperating it from the outside world, the place you lived in, and this place. Now because of that barrier, one could not enter nor exit Gensokyo easily, but it's possible."

Huh. Are you okay?

"One of the ways to pass the barrier is by walking through it, which is probably what happened to you. On some occasion, certain parts of the barrier weaken for a short period of time, allowing almost anything to pass through it."

She pauses, as if to let the words sink in me. I continue to look at her and listen, with my mouth slightly open.

"You are lucky to have found this village. Outsiders, because of a youkai, usually die in a couple of hours after coming here. The only reason I'm helping you is because it's my duty to protect the humans of Gensokyo, and outsiders are my priority. It would be better for you if you follow what I say for now until you are accustomed here."

What?

Silence. We stare at each other for a good few seconds.

"That's all I want to tell you. It's up to you if you want to believe it, but it would be wise if you do."

After that, she turns around and leaves the room as I stare.

I don't know what I should feel right now. Confused? Excited? Joy? Sadness? I don't know if I should laugh or take it seriously. Knowing the reason why miss Kamishirasawa is helping me makes me unhappy, but something inside me is telling me to get over it. Maybe I should keep those thoughts away for now. It won't help me do anything productive.

I fail to put those thoughts aside, and I spent the rest of the day lying on the futon, thinking about what she said. Part of me wants to believe what miss Kamishirasawa said, but another part of me says that it's ridiculous, and she's probably crazy. I prefer the former, maybe because I thirst for something like this. Deep down in my heart, I'm probably screaming 'yes!', and that I'll experience something that I wished for when I was a child.

I wonder what's going to happen to me. If what she said is true, then will I ever get back? If it wasn't, then why did she say that to me? Does she have any reason for lying? What will she gain? What will she lose?

What will happen if I try to leave without her knowing? Will she stop me? She said something about yokai. Is she keeping the people safe from them? The only thing I know about them is that they're supernatural, ugly beasts, and that I don't want to mess with them if I ever had a chance to deal with them. Those kappa with bald spots, those tengus. My knowledge about them is only limited. I'm not interested in them anyway, but now that I'm here, I want to know more about them.

Now suppose if I'm stuck here... tch. Things could get ugly back home. I really don't know what I should be feeling right now.

As I continue to think about my possible future, sleep gradually takes over me. Even though it's still in the afternoon, all those thinking made me sleepy.


	7. Thoughts

Waking up, I found my surroundings dark. Of course it's dark. The lights aren't on, but... it isn't supposed to be this dark in the morning. I sit up straight on my futon and stare outside the window. The air feels cold, and I hug the sheets closer to me. It's already morning... right? But what I see outside is telling me otherwise. Lamps are open, streets are dead, houses our close. Those are what we usually see at night... Oh man. I forgot to eat dinner yesterday. Dinner and lunch.

The sudden thought of food made me hungry, and it made me remember the buns. Ignoring the cold, I stand up, take the buns with me and go outside to take some air in.

Good thing there are street lamps to light the surroundings. I doubt I'll be able to see anything if there's no light in this place.

**_Click._**

A flash. I quickly turn around, but there's nothing there. Maybe it was a lamp. Yeah. Just a lamp... on second thought maybe it's not.

I look at the sky and see a pair of wonderful fireworks in display... calling it wonderful would be an understatement. It completely illuminates the darkness and shows graceful and colorful explosions. It's a wonder how they could create complex fireworks here. I watch in a trance as the fireworks go on like this for a couple minutes, until one side stopped. The other side, though, takes over and envelopes the night for a few seconds until it dissipates into nothing.

Huh... that's funny. From the looks of it, the fireworks are close to me, but I don't hear any explosions... why?

Well, no time to think about that. My body can't handle the cold air and, really, what can someone do at this hour? I guess going outside gave me the chance to see that wonderful display in the sky but other than that, nothing.

I throw the bread to the trash bin as I go inside the school to go back to sleep.

.-.-.

My legs feels more crappier than yesterday. The run I did in the forest is still taking a toll on my legs, but it's more intense today. I feel like crap. My legs weren't this bad yesterday.

After getting out of the futon, I clean it up and do my usual routine in the morning. I could use a bath.

I go outside and ask some of the villagers if there's a public onsen or something like that around here. It's not like me to go to public baths but I have no other choice. I won't be there for the hot spring anyway. I just want a shower. Thankfully, there's one. After taking note of the direction, I thank them and I immediately buy some clothes so I could change.

After taking a bath, I go for a job hunting. I don't want to freeload off miss Kamishirasawa. It'll be bad for my image. Probably hers too.

My first choice is to be an assistant of miss Kamisirasawa, but when I consult her, she said that she won't be able to pay me. I told her that food and shelter would be enough, but she responded with "I'm really sorry. I only have enough for myself."

So much for being with her.

It's almost noon when I found a furniture workshop near the edge of the village hiring an assistant. The terms sounds reasonable so I accepted the job. I'll be starting tomorrow, if not later, for my work.

I went out to look for miss Kamishirasawa and told her of my current job, and she smiles and congratulates me. Her smile is contagious. I smile at her and thank her. I spend the rest of the day walking around the village.

Miss Kamishirasawa. What a caring lady.

I suddenly remember what she said yesterday, and that clouded my thoughts on her. Is she someone with a loose screw? As fast as It appeared, I dismissed that thought. I try to get it off my mind, but it keeps coming back. It made me miss my town.

What's the point of me getting a job here anway? I already have one. Sigh. Am I so fascinated by things that I don't know what I left behind?


	8. Curious

To begin with, I think I have loose screw.

After eating dinner, I ask the villagers if they saw miss Kamishirasawa. Everyone I asked shook their heads and told me that no, they haven't. I guess I'll have to go to the only place I know where she usually is.

Walking towards her house, I think of what I'm going to say. Should I tell her that I have to go back to my town? Deep inside, I am willing to believe what she told me that I can't get out of this... land, but I'm not going to accept that easily.

Once I'm at the door, I knock twice and call out for her.

"Miss Kamishirasawa!"

"It's open." Wow. Does she even use locks?

I go inside and greet her. "Good afternoon."

"What is it?" She asks me. Miss Kamishirasawa is currently writing something on a piece of paper on the table. Probably something related to school, but who knows? It's not like we teachers always do school-related stuffs all the time.

Ok, here it is. I'm getting nervous. I don't know what her reaction would be. I hope it wouldn't be voilent. After all, I completely disregarded everything she said to me last night.

I start off with a simple question. "Where's the nearest town here? or village."

She stops writing. Miss Kamishirasawa puts down her pencil and closes her eyes. Looking at me, she speaks with a melancholic expression. "None."

Whoa. "Really?"

"I already told you."

I still don't accept it though. This is annoying me badly for some reason, and I don't get irritated that fast.

"Anyway, thanks."

I exit her house and, well, get some peace by walking around. I know people do everything for a reason, be it because they're crazy or because it's instincts. Is miss Kamishirasawa plain lying or is that the truth? I don't judge people a liar that fast so that's out. Besides, I haven't even proven it wrong. But the very fact that I was able to go here contradicts with what she said.

Gah. This is troublesome.

Let's think about something else... I wonder what's beyond that shop in the forest? I think it's called Kourinno or something like that. I head towards where I found the path to it and think. If there's a path here, there must be something in the end, right?

I start to walk. Deeper and deeper. I pass by the store that I bought the charger. That reminds me, I still haven't used it yet. I look at the sign and it says 'Kourindou'. At least my guess sounds like that.

Is it just me or is the air thicker here? After a few minutes, I see a fork on the path. My instinct tells me to take the left path, and so I did.

Well, this is creeping me out. It's too silent. Not even the birds are singing. The trees deep in the forest are bigger compare to the one at the outskirts. It seems to be darker here as well, as the trees are keeping the light from shining through. I just noticed that the air is really thick. It's hard to breath. Why wasn't I able to notice it?

I can't control my movements. My mind is telling my body to stop, turn around and go as far as possible from this place, but my body is stubbornly walking straight on the path. Is it night already? or is it still afternoon? I lost track of time. I have nothing in my mind but to walk and walk.

It goes like this for a few minutes until my sight is slowly blurring. I'm walking slowly now, like a zombie. That could be true, as I have no control of my body. I hear laughter, I hear scream, I hear people talking, but I see nothing of those. My imagination? but I can clearly hear them.

My vision starts to darken slowly. Why? I can't even think straight. Am I going to die? Why was I here in the first place? Curiousity? My lungs hurt.

I didn't notice that I'm currently lying on the cold dirt. What can I do now? I can't move my body. I'm in pain. Pain. Pain pain pain inside my body my lungs my throat.

My eyes slowly closes and my consciousness drifts away from me.

-.-.-.-

Here I am, staring at the ceiling... and why am I here? What happened?

Oh.

Heh. I start to laugh silently. I can't believe what just happened. Even though I have no idea what, it seems like I fell unconscious while strolling the forest.

I shook my head, still smiling. Something inside me wants to go back there to experience it again, but I quickly scratch that idea. Am I crazy? I almost died back there... or did I?

I quickly sit up straight to check my body if I'm in a bad condition, but I see nothing out of the ordinary. I can breath normally again. I can move my body without feeling any burning sensation.

This is crazy.

I let myself fall to the bed.

Hm?

Hey I'm in a bed.

I sit up again and scan the room. Thankfully there's a window outside. The sky tells me that the sun is about to set. I guess I wasn't asleep that long. From what I remember, I went to the forest around noon.

I need to ask miss Kamishirasawa about that forest. Right now, though, my stomach is grumbling for food.

As I was about to get out of bed, the door opens and I see miss Kamishirasawa holding a tray of food.

"As expected, you're awake."

I scratch my head.

She comes to my side and place the tray on the table beside.

"You know, you're really lucky. If Mokou hadn't found you, you'd be rotting on the ground right now."

What the hell? "Seriously?" Not that I doubt her, as I experienced feeling something like that before I passed out.

She sighs. "Yes. I still have something to do. Eat well."

And so once again, I stare at her, dumbfounded, as she leaves the room. That was fast. Is she angry?

I look at what she brought. Rice, vegetables, and tea.

Damn I forgot to ask her. That can come later, anyway. If she really does protect the people here, she won't be going anywhere.

After eating, I leave the room. It seems like I'm in her house. How nice. I didn't see this door here when I first came here.

Miss Kamishirasawa is nowhere to be seen here. Maybe she's upstairs? Or maybe she's outside. Well, whatever it is she's doing, and wherever she is right now, I'm sure I'll pass by her if I walk around.

When I leave the building, I can finally see the sun again... but I can see something red far away. I look around. If the sun is there then... on the north east, far away from this village, I assume, I can see a something red forming on the sky. I squint and block the sun to my eyes to see if I can get a much clearer look, but my eyes can only see a line of red. It looks heavy.

No one seemed to have noticed it, but since it's far away from here, and no one really looks at the sky, I can understand why they haven't yet.

Ok. I don't have to think about that. Maybe it was already there to begin with, just like those mountains that I see.

Ah well, no time to rest. I can move my body, so why not? I feel like the way I was before. Nothing changed after that forest incident... I guess.

If I pass by Mokou, I'll make sure to thank her. It feels good to be alive.

-=-=-=-  
I don't want to call these as chapters, but merely parts of a chapter. I want the readers to at least be able to read regularly, and not wait for a whole month or so just for a chapter.


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